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Breed Description: Golden Retrievers are hardy, well-built dogs with a wavy golden coat and gentle loyal nature. This breed of highly-trainable sporting dogs is confident, alert, and eager to please. Their scenting ability and responsiveness in the field makes them superior hunting dogs, while their gentle, loving nature make them good family dogs. Group: Sporting Group.
Purpose of Breed: Retrieving birds
Country of Origin: English-Scottish Border
Average Size: Golden Retrievers range from 20 inches to 24 inches and from 60-70 pounds depending on sex.
Color(s): Any shade of gold or cream.
Coat Type: This breed has a dense, water-repellent coat that is either flat or wavy.
Grooming: The Golden Retriever is an average shedder. Their coat needs to be groomed at least twice-weekly to stay in top form. This breed requires standard care for eyes, ears, pads, and nails.
Exercise Needs: Golden Retrievers are active dogs that need daily outdoor exercise and human contact. This large, energetic breed needs daily outdoor exercise to maintain its physical and mental health. They especially enjoy games involving retrieving. Golden retrievers are not suited to apartment living.
Temperament: The Golden Retriever is gentle and easy to train and makes an excellent family dog. They are patient and gentle, making them wonderful companions for children. Golden retrievers are superb hunting dogs and are happiest when spending time with their family or when fetching and caring for their master. They also make excellent guard dogs.
Common Ailments: Susceptible to skin allergies, thyroid problems, eye problems, and hip dysplasia.
Life Expectancy: Averages 10-13 years.
Trivia: The first three dogs of any breed to win the title of AKC Obedience Champion, were all Golden Retrievers.
More Information: Golden Retriever Club of America
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Dobey is 3 years old, and a Golden Retriever. I was at the end of my pregnancy and my Aunt's dog had puppies. I swore I would never get a puppy but I felt it would be the right thing for my child to have growing up! Thank goodness I got him, he now has a daughter (my daughter - seen in this photo ) He likes to sit on the front porch and watch us feed our friend, the chipmunk. He enjoys running through the sprinkler and playing with water balloons with my daughter ("his daughter").
When my daughter was learning to go up and down the stairs alone, he would push his nose under her butt to make sure she would not fall back. If she was coming down the stairs, he stood in front of her. He is the pup that everyone needs around. He is like another father to my child. Always by her side and always there to protect her. As you can see in this photo, she climbed on the char to watch the chipmunk. He needed to be there at her side.
By Trista from Waterloo, Ont, Canada
Cuddles is 3 month old Golden Retriever. She was a pup from my dog's litter that I decided to keep. She loves to play with socks and run and rip around the house! She loves to tease her older aunt lab mix, Lucky, with it. She is also a great cuddle bunny. She loves to snuggle in your lap and follow you around the house too. We call her the Velcro dog!
By Paula Scott from GA
We got Zoe when, on the way home from Six Flags, my dad (who was driving), took a wrong turn and spotted a "Golden Retriever puppies for sale!" sign. She was the last one for sale, but made an instant connection with my brothers and I.
She liked to play fetch, carry around her stuffed "babies", and eat the cat food. Zoe was born on July 4th 1999 and died of cancer on July 9th, 2007. She was a sweet and loyal friend until her last breath.
By hailey
I was on the way to pick her up and I got a phone call from my doctor. He said that I may have breast cancer. When I picked her up, I knew she was my angel dog.
Winston is a 10 month old Golden Retriever. I bought him for my son last Christmas. My son was born on that day and always wanted his own dog. He takes excellent care of him and they sleep together every night.
Max is a 6 year old Golden Retriever. Max is dog number three that we inherited from our son. He is a 100 pound retriever, and fits the name "Howard the Coward."
I bought him in the summer of 2012 for my mom's birthday.
This is my boy Scout enjoying the winter wonderland! Scout is a Golden Retriever who brings great joy to our lives. He will be six years old on March 28th.
Aloha! Lona'Kai and Jaxon Rolls-Royce are 9 month old Golden Retrievers. We purchased them from a breeder in May 2008. We selected Jaxon after playing with the puppies for a while, but Lona started crying when we were getting ready to leave, we had to take her too!
Link is an 8 years old Golden Retriever. We got him from a great breeder in Ottawa, KS. His mom's name is Winnie, she is a beautiful golden. He loves the dog park and running in the Black Hills of South Dakota.
I got her from a breeder a couple hours away from where I live. I brought her home in February 2012.
Maggie is 14 years old and a mixed Golden Retriever. Maggie was a rescue dog and was 14 months old when we brought her home. She was full grown, was house trained and was past that puppy chewing phase.
Hannah is 5 and is a Samoyed/Golden Retriever, Kona is 2 and is a Golden Retriever. Both beauties are rescued from animal shelters, using Petfinder.com. We adopted Hannah when she was 6 months old, and we adopted Kona when she was 1 1/2 years old.
Ceile (pronounced KeeLee) is a 7 year old Golden Retriever. I got Ceile from a breeder. Ceile likes to catch things, balls, popcorn, etc.
Sara is an 8-1/2 year old Golden Retriever. We rescued her from an unscrupulous breeder who was using her as a puppy factory. Chewing sticks and going for walks are her favorite activities.
Shannon is our 9 year old Golden Retriever. We got Shannon a year ago, the owners split up and had to find a home for her.
Duchess is a 2 and a half year old Golden Retriever, that we bought in Poulsbo, WA. She likes to roll in the snow. She is a very kind dog that we got for 350 dollars. She really likes baths. She loves kids and going swimming to the beach. After a hard day she likes to sleep.
Sweetie Mae is a 5 month old Golden Retriever. She was a Mother's Day present.
Bobbie is an 8 year old Golden Retriever. One day we were just walking through the on post vet clinic where the strays are kept and as soon as we saw her we knew she was for us. So we adopted her in May 2002.
Chase is a Golden Retriever and is now 4 1/2 months old. He was named Chase (Utley) after a Philadelphia Phillies baseball player. We brought Chase home from the breeder on Aug 1.
